Gerard Henderson, The Australian’s columnist, had a fair spray for Indi independent candidate Helen Haines, ahead of her national TV appearance on Q&A on Monday (May 13):

“Turn it up. Helen Haines is not the “Independent for Indi”. That’s just fake news. Rather she is one of seven candidates contesting the seat of Indi which was vacated by Independent Cathy McGowan,” Henderson wrote.

“So, on the eve of the 2019 election, Q&A has chosen a panel of four – three of whom are critical of the Morrison Coalition in various ways. It’s a case of Senator Simon Birmingham versus Tanya Plibersek plus Senator Richard Di Natale plus Helen Haines.

“Indeed, Helen Haines is more Green/Lite than Labor. On May Day 2019 she was one of a dozen self-declared “Independent MPs” who signed the Australian Conservation Foundation’s Climate Leadership Agreement. It advocates, inter alia (i) opposition to the proposed Adani coal mine, (ii) exceeding Australia’s Paris Agreement emissions target, (iii) at least 50 per cent renewable energy by 2030 and (iv) opposition to the commitment of public money to any coal mines. Ms Haines is also opposed to the Coalition’s border protection policy.

“Fellow signatories include Kerryn Phelps, Julia Banks, Zali Steggall, Rob Oakeshott and Oliver Yates. All are opposed to the Liberal Party in the 2019 election in, respectively, Wentworth, Flinders, Warringah, Cowper and Kooyong.

“Oh yes, the Greens have given Helen Haines its second preference in Indi behind the Greens itself and the Labor Party has placed her third on its how-to-vote card behind only Labor itself and the Greens. In short, on Monday Q&A has another stacked panel which favours the left,” Henderson said.