Former Tasmanian Greens leader Cassy O’Connor believes Labor was “afraid to take government” following the 2025 state election.
In a wide-ranging interview on the Poll Position podcast released today, O’Connor explained the Greens’ decision to support Jeremy Rockliff’s Liberal minority government instead of Labor.
“[Labor] just couldn’t get past what I think is a visceral fear of working with the Greens,” she said.
O’Connor said then-Labor leader Dean Winter “gave no ground” during negotiations, while Rockliff made concessions on greyhounds and salmon farming.
“I just can’t help but feeling they’re quite comfortable on the opposition benches, getting paid, throwing rocks,” she said.
The upper house MLC also revealed she learned of colleague Helen Burnett’s defection to the crossbench from journalists before Burnett contacted her directly.
“It didn’t seem to me there was enough attempt make to fix any problem,” she said.
“And my first thought was for all of our members and supporters who volunteered, door-knocked, worked so hard to get that second seat in Clark, which was, you know, our holy grail.”
O’Connor described feeling “bewilderment, anger and a sense of betrayal and sadness” over the departure.
Turning to the upcoming state budget, she had direct advice for the premier to abandon the Macquarie Point stadium.
“There is still time,” she said. “And that stadium is going to cost more than $1.5 billion.”
O’Connor also spoke positively about Liberal backbencher Michael Ferguson’s stance on poker machine reform, calling him a “conviction politician” who understands the harm caused by gambling.
Asked which politician from another party she would recruit to the Greens, O’Connor nominated Liberal speaker Jackie Patrusma.
“She’s a very good person. She’s a good minister. She really cares,” she said.
O’Connor also confirmed her 2014 sacking from cabinet by then-premier Lara Giddings was a “political decision” ahead of that year’s election.
“It was pretty clear to us … that we were getting closer to an election and she needed to boot us out of cabinet,” she said.
“And I think, you know, it was a sign of political immaturity of the whole thinking around minority government at the time.”
Poll Position is hosted by Brad Stansfield and Alex Johnston.
