Now he is putting his name up for state parliament, even if he admits it's unlikely he'll be elected.

Despite that when the Shooters and Fishers Party bus tour visited Inverell on Tuesday, the upper house candidate was happy to speak with The Inverell Times about this month's election.

Mr Lee said he originally became involved with the party because of the situation with firearms.

“I go to Canada a fair bit, and one of the main things that’s happened in Canada is the common sense gun reform, and I believe that’s what we need here in Australia,” Mr Lee said. 

“But the party is so much broader than all that now. I mean, I’m standing only fourth on the ticket anyway, the chance of me actually getting a seat is extremely unlikely.”

Other than his own views on gun laws, Mr Lee knew absolutely nothing about his own party’s policies.

Asked about the Native Vegetation Act and Mr Lee called for help from  Tenterfield’s Steven Bowler, who initially introduced himself as ‘a roadie’, but is the party’s membership and donation’s officer.

In fact, Mr Bowler answered all the policy questions for Mr Lee.

“The problem with the National Party at the moment is if you look at the top of the ticket for the upper house of the National Party, the bloke lives in Kirribilli in Sydney,” Mr Bowler said. 

It was a valiant attempt to take another party to task, but with his own candidate happily sitting silently beside him, it all fell a bit flat.

Mr Bowler knew all about the party’s stance on the sale of the poles and wires, and a great deal about the March 28 election, and ended by saying The Shooter and Fishers Party was running its biggest campaign ever, and were in it to win it. 

Mr Lee said he agreed with all of that.  

And that was fortunate, because it is Mr Lee who has his name on the Upper House ticket, and who is asking people to vote for him.

Shooters Party meets with Inverell Shire Council

THE Shooters and Fishers Party MLC Robert Borsak met with Inverell deputy mayor Anthony Michael, councillors Di Baker and Jacki Watts and director Corporate and Economic, Ken Beddie.

Mr Borsak said he gave council the assurance that should the party gain the balance of power again, that it would not be looking favourably upon the state government’s Fit For the Future process, as it looks like it might affect council.

The government touts the Fit For the Future Program as one that will bring a stronger system of local government, with new legislation, greater transparency and the strengthening of local leadership. 

While it adopts a ‘one size does not fit all’ approach, it does offer incentives for councils that wish to amalgamate, and that mention of the ‘A’ word was enough to have some councils casting it suspicious, sideways glances from the beginning. Councils state-wide need to respond to the package by June 30.

Inverell Shire Council has discussed the program at several of their monthly meetings, and councillors have always been buoyed by the strength of the council’s financial position.

“The concept of splitting water and sewerage services out from the council would make it unviable, and it’s just something we wouldn’t support,” Mr Borsak said.

“Certainly from what I’ve seen, talking to the general manger and councillors, Inverell is Fit For the Future already. It’s a very suitably well managed and well run council. I think it provides excellent services for the shire.” 

Deputy mayor Anthony Michael said he was surprised to learn that there was very little legislation in place for Fit For the Future.

“I thought the government was pushing towards merging councils to be fit for the future and it didn’t happen,” Cr Michael said.

“They forcing councils to fit all these issues, but he’s saying there’s not a lot of legislation in place to force councils to do this.”