Independents aren't perfect. But here's where they beat major parties every time

Climate 200 is just one of the contributors to the community independents' campaigns, but here we are again, with it being trotted out as proof of something sinister.

I cannot fathom how this scare campaign can be effective - a simple google search proves their propaganda reels wrong. If Climate 200 was a vaccine and the government had told us it was good for us, everyone would have turned into post-grad-level researchers debunking their claims. But this? This, people accept as fact.

Let's break it down. Again.

Climate 200 is not a lobby group. It does not purchase access, push bills, or whisper in parliamentary ears. It funds candidates who already align with its values - transparency, climate action, and integrity. That's not coercion. That's coherence.

The major parties know this. They also know that Climate 200's donations are publicly declared, traceable, and dwarfed by the sums they themselves receive from fossil fuel giants, gambling corporations, and pharmaceutical companies (oh the irony).

But they persist in the smear because it's the only narrative they've got.

Let's be clear: the independents are not secretly plotting to take over ministries and greenlight gas projects. That honour, bizarrely, belongs to former prime minister Scott Morrison, who appointed himself to five ministries - including resources - without informing the public (or his own cabinet).

In one case, he used his secret powers to block a gas exploration permit, a decision later overturned by the Federal Court due to impartiality concerns. If you're looking for covert influence over energy policy, you won't find it in the community independents.

Nor will you find independents seeking to repeal legislation at their donors' behest.

That was the Coalition, under pressure from mining interests, who dismantled the carbon tax.

The real story here isn't about Climate 200 - it's about the major parties' discomfort with scrutiny. Unlike independents, who must declare every dollar and justify every stance, the majors operate under a cloak of "partydom." Their donors are rarely scrutinised by electorate. Their influence is diffuse, buried in party structures and investment arms like Labor Holdings and the Cormack Foundation. They rake in tens of millions, much of it from industries with vested interests in policy outcomes.

And yet, the media spotlight rarely lingers. And as such, neither does the people's so it seems.

Consider the fossil fuel sector. In 2023-24 alone, companies like Santos, Chevron, and Woodside donated hundreds of thousands to both major parties. Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting gave $500,000 to the Coalition.

Furthermore, Labor received substantial donations from fossil fuel companies in FY2023, a period marked by key decisions on gas expansion and emissions policy.

Gambling companies like Sportsbet and Tabcorp also opened their wallets, with donations landing just as reforms were being debated - and shelved. Coincidence? Perhaps. But the timing raises questions that deserve answers.

Contrast this with Climate 200's model: a transparent, values-driven fund supporting candidates who already stand for integrity, climate action, and community representation. There's no quid pro quo. No backroom deals. Just a shared commitment to doing politics differently.

And that's precisely what threatens the major parties. Independents aren't in it for power - they're in it for representation. They answer to their communities, not party whips. Their sponsorship deals aren't like the major parties' - they are about alignment and integrity, not power-promises. Community independents bring nuance to debate, challenge groupthink, and vote according to conscience. That kind of autonomy is anathema to the party machine.

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So when the majors fling mud at independents, it's not about ethics - it's about fear. Fear of losing safe seats. Fear of being held accountable. Fear of a political landscape where power is earned, not inherited.

The public deserves better than this tired narrative. We deserve transparency across the board - not just for independents, but for every donor, every deal, every influence. We deserve a media that interrogates major party funding with the same vigor it applies to Climate 200. And we deserve a Parliament where representation trumps partisanship.

We need need to stop pretending that Climate 200 is the problem. The real problem is a political culture that treats integrity as a threat and transparency as a liability.

The independents aren't perfect - but they're not beholden. And in a system drowning in vested interests, that's a start.