Labor leader Dean Winter says he is making “really positive” headway with independent crossbenchers ahead of Tuesday’s no-confidence vote, as he and the Greens remain at loggerheads.
Winter told reporters on Thursday that independent Craig Garland and Shooters, Fishers and Farmers MP Carlo Di Falco had indicated they were unlikely to back the Liberal government.
“The advantage that Labor has is that we start much closer together with the independents than the Liberals do,” Winter said.
“We start from the point where we want to work with them to fix the budget, where we want to focus on the integrity matters that Tasmanians want us to.”
His comments come as Tasmania faces an uncertain political future following an election that left neither major party with a majority.
For the first time, the crossbench – now dominated by six independent and minor party MPs – outnumbers the five Greens MPs.
Winter said current talks with the independents were about long-term stability and not quick political wins.
“It can’t be about short-term deals at the start, about sugar hits, about media and press conferences at the start. It has to be about a framework where we work together,” he said.
But, he said, the Greens’ absence from those discussions has complicated things. Winter rejected suggestions their no-show at a crossbench working group meeting this week was by mutual agreement.
“The Greens accepted the invitation and they didn’t arrive,” he said. “Rosalie [Woodruff] did tell me that she wouldn’t be going and I said that’s your decision.”
While conceding Labor isn’t perfect from the Greens’ perspective, Winter said they still offered a better alternative than the Liberals.
“They’ve got a choice between Eric Abetz and Ruth Forrest. They’ve got a choice between a Liberal government that’s driving us towards $13 billion worth of net debt and a Labor government that’s got a plan to fix it,” he said.
He said the Greens would continue to be invited to crossbench meetings, but he would not compromise on core Labor values.
“No one’s expecting Rosalie Woodruff to compromise on the things that she really cares about and I hope she doesn’t expect me to either,” he said.
He said they should instead focus on finding common ground on key issues including health, housing and budget repair.
Parliament will return on Tuesday morning, with Labor needing eight additional votes – including those of the Greens – to bring down the Rockliff government.
“The decision that’s made on Tuesday needs to be final. It needs to be a decision about what’s best for Tasmania’s parliament, what’s best for Tasmania’s people,” Winter said.
