G100 Political Engagement held in new format this year

As part of the Group of 100’s (G100) commitment to providing the highest level of representation and advocacy, the annual Political Engagement Day has been designed for members to meet and interact with key politicians.

The Political Engagement Day is typically a full day of meetings at Parliament House in Canberra. However, due to the pandemic this year, members were invited to meet with the politicians via an exclusive online event. As it proved  impossible to have members and their teams engaging online all day, the event has been split in half and was run over two lunchtimes on the 22 and 23 September 2020.

Each year the event alternates the focus between the Government and the Opposition and include two up and coming backbenchers from the other Party. This year it was the turn of the Opposition, so the G100 invited several Shadow Ministers and two Government backbenchers who head up key Parliamentary Committees.

Members heard an overview of MPs’ areas of interest; they discussed the impact of the coronavirus on their portfolio and shared their Party’s plans for the future.

The speaker lineup of the 2020 Political Engagement Days included:

Shadow Assistant Minister for Treasury Shadow Assistant Minister for Charities – Dr Andrew Leigh MP; 

Shadow Assistant Minister for Financial Services Shadow Assistant Minister for the Republic – Matt Thistlethwaite MP; 

Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Resources – Joel Fitzgibbon MP;

Shadow Minister for Innovation, Technology & the Future of Work -Clare O’Neil MP;

Chair of Standing Committee of Privileges; Senator for NSW – Senator Deborah O’Neill;

Chair of Standing Committee on Tax and Revenue – Jason Falinski MP; 

Shadow Minister for Communications – Michelle Rowland MP;

Shadow Assistant Treasurer & Shadow Minister for Financial Services – Stephen Jones MP; 

Chair of Education and Employment References Committee; Deputy Chair of Education and Employment Legislation Committee; Senator for Western Australia – Senator Louise Pratt; and

Shadow Treasurer – Dr Jim Chalmers MP.