The inability to connect directly with voters and hide behind hackneyed slogans and rehearsed answers is a sad commentary on both Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten. The political situation is not helped by the selection of candidates to represent us. Too often they are political insiders with little or no experience in real life, and if a candidate dares to differ from the party line, they are howled down by their opposition and ridiculed by the media.

This is why the voters of Indi are well served by having an independent representative in Cathy McGowan. She is free of the restrictions imposed by party infighting and can speak her mind on a variety of issues. One of her best achievements is her engagement with the community and encouragement to become involved with current issues.

Only when the major parties address the problems facing us in an adult manner will they become relevant again, until then vote independent or there will never be meaningful change.

WORLD No Tobacco Day was on Tuesday, May 31. I would like to share with you how I stopped.

I know how hard it is to quit. I used to be a very heavy smoker and smoked 60 to 80 cigarette a day. If you do the maths, I think it is about $15 a packet of 20, so that's $60 a day up in smoke. How much a year?

Here is how I was told to stopped smoking. Think of something that you have always wanted. It could be a car or holiday or something else. Take a photo of it and have it printed poster size, and some small photos. Hang the large one around the house and put the smaller one in your packet of cigarettes. Every time you want a cigarette, look at the picture and ask yourself what do you really want. What's on the picture or a cigarette? 

I always wanted a Holden Statesman. Now I have one and I have been overseas twice and I feel much better. Do you really want that cigarette? Think about it and good luck.

ON behalf of the Stroke Foundation I would like to thank the thousands of Australians who helped take the pressure down this April by participating in Australia’s Biggest Blood Pressure Check.

During April, the Stroke Foundation, in partnership with Priceline Pharmacy, aimed to deliver 50,000 free blood pressure checks around the country and raise vital awareness of the risks associated with stroke. With your support we exceeded this total, delivering more than 56,000 checks across the country. With Australia’s Biggest Blood Pressure Check coming to a close it is vital we remember strokes don’t just happen one month of the year. Every 10 minutes an Australian has a stroke. Every 10 minutes someone’s life changes forever.

However, there are many things we can all do to help protect ourselves, like being aware of and managing our blood pressure, getting more active, maintaining a healthy diet, stopping smoking, reducing our alcohol consumption. I know together we can fight stroke and win.