Join the Australia Institute for Politics in the Pub with Kristy McBain MP, Member for Eden-Monaro and Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories.

Kristy is Mum to three children. She served as Councillor at Bega Valley Shire Council from 2012 and as Mayor from 2016 to 2020 during which time the community was hit by drought, bushfires, floods and COVID-19. She was elected Member for Eden-Monaro in 2020 and appointed Minister in 2022.

Join Kristy in discussion with Ebony Bennett, deputy director of the Australia Institute, to talk about her journey from local government to federal parliament and serving as Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories.

Speakers

Minister Kristy McBain MP

The first in her family to attend university, Kristy has always been a hard worker, graduating with degrees in Journalism and Law.

Since being elected Member for Eden-Monaro in 2020, she has built an admirable reputation as a plain speaker, hard-working local member across all levels of government. She was a strong community advocate as a Bega Valley Shire Councillor for eight years, and Mayor for four.

Her public profile was greatly enhanced during the Black Summer bushfires when her courage and determination inspired her community, cementing her true leadership qualities.

In 2022, Kristy was appointed Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories in the new Albanese Labor Government. It was a perfect fit for the woman who had grown up in regional Victoria before moving to the Far South Coast in NSW in the 1990s.

A product of Eden Marine High School, Kristy passionately believes that young people from regional Australia deserve the same opportunities that are available to those in metropolitan Australia.

Kristy’s electorate of Eden-Monaro spans Ngambri, Ngunnawal, Wiradyuri, Ngarigo and Yuin Country. It stretches from the Sapphire Coast and Bega Valley to the fast-growing Queanbeyan and Yass regions, rising to the Snowy Mountains, Snowy Valleys and Monaro plains.

Articulate, industrious and a real people person, Kristy is an energetic local member and Minister.

Ebony Bennett

Ebony is deputy director of the Australia Institute and host of its popular webinar series and Follow the Money podcast.

Beginning her career as a journalist in the Canberra press gallery for the Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Financial Review, Ebony has worked in federal politics in a variety of roles for almost 20 years and has published research on climate change and energy, gender and street harassment and contributed a chapter to ‘Morrison’s Miracle: The 2019 Australian Federal Election’ (ANU Press 2020) and ‘The Nordic Edge: Policy Possibilities for Australia’ (MUP 2021).

Ebony is a regular commentator and contributor across broadcast and print media, she appears regularly as a commentator on ABC and Sky News and has a fortnightly column in The Canberra Times.