Summary
Liberals for Forests was an Australian political minor party. It contested both state and federal elections between 2001 and 2008, but only ever achieved one elected representative – Janet Woollard in Western Australia. It never achieved representation at the federal level.[1]
Liberals for Forests | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | LFF |
| Founder | Keith Woollard |
| Founded | 3 July 1999 |
| Registered | 1 May 2001 |
| Dissolved | 2008 |
| Ideology | Green liberalism |
| Western Australian Legislative Assembly | 1 / 57 (2001−2008)
|
| Albany City Council | 1 / 12 (2001)
|
The party was founded in 1999 by Dr Keith Woollard, husband of Janet Woollard and an ex-AMA president.[2][3] Janet successfully contested a seat at the 2001 state election, and was re-elected in 2005 and again in 2008 as an Independent Liberal.
The party generally professed itself to be ideologically aligned with the centre-right sympathies of the Liberal Party, but was aligned with Labor in certain states such as NSW but with a greater regard to environmentalism.[4]
Despite its low profile, the party gained a respectable proportion of the primary senate vote in some states. For example, in the 2004 election it received only a few hundred votes less than the Australian Democrats in Victoria.
Name edit
The registered party name at the Australian Electoral Commission[5] and the Western Australian Electoral Commission[6] was "liberals for forests" (uncapitalised), but it was known in newspapers as "Liberals for Forests". By late 2009, Liberals for Forests was no longer a registered political party anywhere in Australia.
See also edit
- Small-l liberal – a term used by LFF candidates to describe themselves in order to attract the support of mildly disenchanted coalition voters
- Sustainable Australia Party
- Teal independents – a loosely-aligned group of independent and minor party politicians characterised as strongly advocating for increased action to mitigate climate change.
References edit
- ^ The Nationals: The Progressive, Country, and National Party 186287526X Paul Davey – 2006 "A group calling themselves Liberals for Forests fielded a candidate, as they did in six other House of Representatives seats. They produced a how-to-vote card on election day, which the Liberal and National parties argued was misleading to.."
- ^ "Dr Keith Woollard today launched in Kings Park a new political party called Liberals for Forests of which he is the President". westpix.
- ^ Bolt, Cathy (4 August 1999). "New greenie spits chips". Australian Financial Review.
- ^ Worth, David (2004). "Reconciliation in the forest? An exploration of the conflict over the logging of native forests in the south west of Western Australia". Commons Social Change Library.
- ^ "AEC redirection page".
- ^ "Home | Western Australian Electoral Commission".
External links edit
- official site (Internet Archive – snapshot 2006)