ACT Election 2020: Group of independents and minor parties establish council

The ACT Council of Minor Parties and Independents includes: the Belco Party, the Climate Change Justice Party, Sustainable Australia and the Federation Party. Independents are Fuxin Lee, Migonne Cullen and Helen Cross.

Australian Climate Change Justice Party candidate for Kurrajong Petar Johnson said each independent and candidate had made a commitment to consult with others in the council if they were elected to the assembly.

"It means if one of us gets through this election they are obliged to sit down with all the minor parties first and clarify policy alignment... clarify can we find policies of synergy and then they'll take those to the major parties," he said.

"There is no indication as to whether we would support Labor, Liberal or the Greens... but I'm very assured all the minor parties are going to stand firm."

Mr Johnson was confident one of the candidates would get across the line, he said he gave it about an 80 per cent chance. But there hasn't been a member from a minor party other than the Greens or an independent member in the assembly since the early 2000s.

The big ticket item from the parties was a commitment to give every house, apartment and commercial building in the ACT $10,000 towards either solar panels, battery storage or electric vehicle charging.

Mr Johnson said if one of the candidates held the balance of power this would be the first priority in negotiations.

"If one of us gets in the first item on the table is exactly this, give a dividend to the community for going to sustainable energy," he said.

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The scheme has been estimated to cost about $2 billion, or $500 million a year. They planned to get some assistance from Commonwealth COVID-19 recovery funding. Mr Johnson said the cost would be recovered in long-term dividends. He said estimates showed each household would have a dividend of $2000 a year and over 20 years it would equate to $16 billion.

ACT Council of Minor Parties and Independents spokesman John-Paul Romano said the policy would create 5000 jobs.

"What we are doing is for the sake of democracy, it's for the sake of our city and that's why our minor parties and independents have gotten together to announce this policy," he said.

"[It's] a visionary policy, an innovative policy that will bring us further into the 21st century."