A former Liberal MP and two ex-Jacqui Lambie Network members have joined The Nationals, launching their campaign with the goal of putting a stop to the Macquarie Point stadium.
John Tucker, who previously quit the Liberal Party over the $945 million stadium project, will spearhead the campaign in Lyons alongside former JLN MP Andrew Jenner and newcomers Rick Mandelson and Francis Haddon-Cave.
Miriam Beswick, also an ex-JLN MP, will stand in Braddon, with Angela Armstrong and Carl Cooper to run for the party in Bass.
The group unveiled their election pitch today, vowing to use any influence they gain in parliament to push the government back to the drawing board.
“The major parties aren’t listening to the hundreds of thousands of ordinary Tasmanians who recognise that [the] Macquarie Point stadium is a bad deal for the state,” Tucker said.
The former Lyons MP said he had joined the Tasmanian Nationals because they were the “only mainstream party prepared to take a stand against the stadium”.
While the Greens have also pledged to stop the project, they don’t support key regional industries backed by the Nationals like salmon farming and forestry.
“As a condition of our support, we’ll make sure that the government takes the stadium goes back to the drawing board and refocuses on basic services and balancing the state budget,” Tucker added.
Jenner, who also represents Lyons, said Nationals candidates in Bass, Lyons and Braddon bring a range of life experience to the table.
“We’ve got the right kind of experience. All of us have established careers outside politics and worked to improve our communities,” he said.
“Most importantly, those of us who have already been elected to parliament have a track record of putting our local communities first, ahead of party politics and even our own careers.”
Beswick said the Tasmanian Nationals offered a “genuine alternative” for voters concerned about the stadium.
“Most Tasmanians want to put the brakes on the stadium plan before it’s too late,” she said.
“We’ll be a strong voice for those people, but we’re more than just a party of protest.”
