The former charity chief executive – elected on a platform of climate action and integrity in politics – sold her shares in Viva Energy,which refines oil for Shell in Australia and owns Geelong Oil Refinery,and Beach Energy,an oil and gas exploration and production firm. She also sold shareholdings in toll road operator Transurban,Sonic Healthcare and Charter Hall.
Independent North Sydney MP and former shareholder activist Kylea Tink.Alex Ellinghausen
Tink won the seat of North Sydney,a former Liberal stronghold,at the May election alongside other so-called teal MPs who were victorious in blue-ribbon seats in Sydney,Melbourne and Perth.
She told theHerald andThe Age she purchased the shares in early 2021,shortly before being approached to run for the seat,while she was looking into ways she could affect environmental change from within organisations.
Subsequently,,and she had not asked any questions at its AGM,while a recording of Beach Energy’s AGM did not show Tink asking a question.
“As the fates would have it,[campaign group] North Sydney’s Independent reached out to me by the end of April[or] May of that year,so I just never had the time to do the activism that I wanted to do,” Tink said on Friday after updating her register of interests earlier in the week.
“Do I wish I had done something more? Yes I do,absolutely ... Now that I am the federal member the reality is I have an opportunity to exert that influence from inside the legislative system.”
Tink revealed on Friday the shareholding was small;she had purchased 1000 shares in Viva Energy and Beach Energy,and 100 in Transurban,with the entire shareholding costing less than $6000.
At the time her shareholdings were revealed,Tink said she was interested in Viva Energy as she was concerned it was not being pushed to produce the highest quality fuel,while she bought Beach Energy shares to gain insight into how they were proceeding with oil and gas exploration.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton called Tink’s explanation “concocted” and labelled her a hypocrite. “For somebody who espouses transparency it’s the complete opposite,” he toldSky News at the time.
Tink said the small dividends she received were donated to renewable energy campaigns or emissions offsets,and upon selling the stocks she made a donation to climate campaign group Market Forces.
“I do really believe that shareholder activism is an important way for people to get involved and influence the directions companies take,” she said.
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