Mark Coulton, the Nationals’ Member for Parkes, has released the following statement.
It is with mixed emotions that I announce that I will not be contesting the seat of Parkes at the next federal election.
It has been an incredible honour to represent the people of the Parkes electorate for more than 16 years, but the time has come for me to step aside.
I’ve spent the past 16 years travelling hundreds of thousands of kilometres across my electorate, getting to know the strong and vibrant communities I represent. It has been a great privilege and I’m extremely proud of everything we’ve been able to achieve over that time.
But it’s time for a fresh face to take up the baton and I’m looking forward to the members of The Nationals in the Parkes electorate finding a suitable replacement who can continue to provide strong representation in Canberra.
In the meantime, I will continue to proudly represent this wonderful electorate with the utmost enthusiasm until the next election.