CATHY McGowan’s campaign and GetUp have been forced to explain a link at the 2013 election after a flyer featuring the Indi MP surfaced in the final week of the campaign.
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The flyer highlights Ms McGowan’s stance on coal seam gas mining, a safety net for vulnerable members of the community and marriage equality.
Last week, Ms McGowan’s campaign team distanced itself from a report in The Australian newspaper that a grassroots movement similar to Voices For Indi in the New England electorate were copying the Indi playbook from 2013.
Campain team member Cam Klose said on Friday GetUp sent out a scorecard questionnaire which the 2013 campaign team filled out.
A GetUp spokesperson said on Friday: “Three years ago GetUp issued state-based scorecards on important issues like tackling climate change, protecting farmland from CSG and providing a safety net for people with disabilities.
“People should be informed about where their local candidates stands on issues.
“The state-based information on the scorecard for Victoria did not cover information about where local candidate for Indi Cathy McGowan stood, so we included an additional section with background on her policy positions.
“We provided information without seeking to favour one candidate over another, merely to inform people of what the issues were stake and where each candidate stood.”
Indi Liberal campaign manager Tony Schneider said the flyer was indisputable evidence of a link between GetUp and Ms McGowan.
“If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck,” he said.
