RIVERINA senator Perin Davey says erasing mobile phone blackspots is key to her priority to drive jobs growth in country areas.
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The Nationals member was on Tuesday formally declared a senator for NSW after being elected as the fifth of six successful candidates from last month's federal election.
Based at Conargo, north of Denilqiuin, Ms Davey was preselected to replace Nationals senator John 'Wacka' Williams.
She is the first western Riverina senator since Tom Bull, a farmer south of Narrandera who represented the Country Party in the Upper House from 1965 to 1971.
"My priority is definitely regional services and regional infrastructure because I believe if government can provide the support that is required, then that helps to attract private investment and more jobs in our regions," Ms Davey said.
"We do need to address mobile blackspots, we've got money going into our roads and the inland railway rolling out, but we do need to maximise opportunities with that infrastructure."
Having grown up in Canberra and started her career as a cadet journalist at the Mudgee Guardian in central west NSW, Ms Davey has worked in water policy for the past nine years.
Seven of those were with Murray Irrigation and over the past two she has operated her own consultancy.
The new MP flagged reviews into water markets and socio-economic fallout as crucial to providing facts for "what needs to be done to mitigate or reverse the negative impacts" of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan.
"There doesn't need to be more water recovered for agriculture, so we need to get those reviews done and the basin plan delivered without hurting communities any further," Ms Davey said.
Liberal member for Farrer Sussan Ley congratulated Ms Davey.
"As long as I have known Perin she's been a strong and intelligent voice for our part of NSW, and will be a great addition to the parliament," Ms Ley said.
Ms Davey plans to have an office at Deniliquin and share space with Ms Ley and vice-versa with the Liberal MP's Albury and Griffith rooms.
The new senator is 47, married to Berrigan-raised John Dickie and they have two daughters.
Meanwhile, Corowa One Nation candidate Kate McCulloch finished seventh in the Senate count behind Green Mehreen Faruqi.
"I am so sorry that I have not been elected but that is democracy," Ms McCulloch wrote on Facebook in response to the result.
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