State Election Advocacy

Carers Count Too

Commitments for Carers

Both major parties have shared their priorities for carers with us.

The Hon. Colin Brooks MP, Minister for Disability, Ageing and Carers, has committed to delivering a new Carers Strategy in 2023 if elected.

The Hon. Tim Bull, Shadow Minister for Disability, Seniors and Carers, announced funding for carer groups and social enterprises if elected.

What will make carers’ lives easier? Let your state political candidates know. Let’s get loud for carers.

With the Victorian State Election set for Saturday 26 November 2022, now is the time to advocate for better support for carers.

The more voices we have speaking up for carers, the harder it will be for our state politicians to ignore us!

We are calling on the Victorian Government to ensure carers receive the support they need to continue to perform their vital caring role. It’s time to care for the carers, because they count too.

Follow these steps to make sure that your state politicians include strong support for carers in their campaign agenda.

Read our election statement here to learn about what we are asking the government to do.

There are three ways you can get loud for carers and advocate for better support:

Write a post on social media and tag your state member

Step 1: Identify your state member and research a bit about them

Find your state member of parliament by typing your address here. Click on the "District" to find your state member, and then click on "view member" to find their contact details.
Look on their biography page to find out a bit about them and search for them on social media.

Step 2: Use our template to write your social media post

Download one of these tiles.
Post the text and the image to your social media page, tag the member of parliament and other candidates in your electorate and use the hashtags.
You can also use our election statement to craft your own social media post that speaks to what you are most passionate about.

If you need help preparing your post, call Carers Victoria on 1800 514 845.

Write a letter to your state member or another political candidate

Step 1: Identify your state member and research a bit about them

Find your state member of parliament by typing your address here. Click on the "District" to find your state member, and then click on "view member" to find their contact details.
Read through their biography to find out more about them. Do they already have a position on supporting carers? Do they have an interest in mental health, aging, or disability? Look for areas of common ground.

Step 2: Use our template to draft your letter and send it out

Download this letter template and add your own details in the spaces provided. You might like to begin the letter by acknowledging something that the person you are speaking to, or their party, has done well.
Email your letter to the office of the member of parliament or another political candidate, or print the letter and send a hard copy.

Step 3: Optional: call or email later to follow up

After a week, write a follow up letter or email to the politician and ask if they received your letter, restating changes you would like to see.

If you need help writing your letter, call Carers Victoria on 1800 514 845.

Ask for a meeting and give the MP your views in person

Step 1: Identify your state member and research a bit about them

Find your state member of parliament by typing your address here. Click on the "District" to find your state member, and then click on "view member" to find their contact details.
Read through their biography to find out more about them. Do they already have a position on supporting carers? Do they have an interest in mental health, aging, or disability? Look for areas of common ground.

Step 2: Plan what you would like to discuss

Read through the Carers Victoria Election Statement here. Choose one or two of the platform priorities that are important to you, and think about how improvements in that priority area would help you or the people you know who are carers. Do you have any stories from your experiences that can show the state member how important this priority is?
You don’t need to be a polished speaker or have a long story to tell. Just think of an example from real life that will show how important the priority would be to help carers.

If you would like to do more research to back up your issue, see our election statement here. Reports from our COVID-19 and Carers Survey can be found in our Knowledge Centre.

Step 3: Contact the candidate or member of parliament

Download this letter template and add your own details in the spaces provided. Add your own priorities from step 2.
Email the office of the member of parliament or another political candidate, or print the letter and send a hard copy requesting a meeting with them.
After a few days, call or email their office to follow up on your request for a meeting.

Step 4: Before the meeting

If you are able to secure a meeting with your state member or another political candidate, follow these steps to prepare:

Do your homework. Look at their website and social media content. Plan to start the meeting by acknowledging something that the person you are speaking to, or their party, has done well.
Prepare yourself by writing your main concerns down from step 2. If more than one person is attending the meeting agree on some goals and prepare an agenda in advance. When you are speaking to a state politician, focus on state issues.
Take the time to prepare your thoughts and rehearse what you would like to say.

Step 5: During the meeting

Arrive 10 minutes early. Do not be late.
During the meeting be assertive, but not aggressive. Remember that politicians are accountable to their electorate.
Introduce your concerns by sharing your personal experience of being a carer.
Aim to have a solution or partial solution to your problem in mind. Solutions can be drawn from your own, or your group’s ideas, or from Carers Victoria’s Election Statement.
Be clear in communicating how the person that you are talking to can be part of your proposed solution. This could include them asking a question in parliament, or speaking with the Treasurer or Premier about your issue.
Ask the politician to raise your concerns in parliament or at their party’s decision making forums. This ensures your issues get a public ‘airing’ and are put on the public record.
Press for a commitment. Ask the politician to clarify what response they will make and agree on a process for follow up i.e. who will contact who in what time frame and how (by phone, letter or email).
As you are winding up the meeting, provide the politician with a list of your concerns. Outline how they could be part of the solution. Ask them to distribute this information to relevant members of their party.
Thank them for their time.

Step 6: After the meeting

Write a follow-up letter to the election candidate and staff, thanking them for their time and restating any commitments that they made.

If you need help preparing to meet your state member, call Carers Victoria on 1800 514 845.

Carers Count Too - Carers Victoria Election Statement

Our election statement prioritises five key areas of change that are vitally needed to make carers’ lives better. We have developed these from your feedback, survey responses and conversations, and we are using them as the focus of our campaign as we call on politicians to commit to these priorities.