Tasmanian Liberal Premier Jeremy Rockliff has praised Peter Dutton’s leadership qualities, despite the federal Opposition Leader skipping Tasmania’s annual state meeting.
Rockliff addressed party faithful at the gathering in Launceston on Saturday, while Dutton opted to attend a separate Liberal function in the state on Friday night.
The Premier’s endorsement comes after he earlier this year criticized Dutton’s comparison of pro-Palestine protests with the Port Arthur shooting.
“In Peter, we have a strong and passionate leader of Liberal values,” Rockliff said.
“He will stand up to the union bullies who have corrupted building sites across the nation and he will stand up for ordinary working families who have been devastated by the federal government’s inability to control inflation and interest rates.”
Tasmanian Labor MP Shane Broad claimed Dutton’s lack of attendance show’s how “shambolic” Rockliff’s government is.
“Even Peter Dutton does not want to be associated with it – choosing to leave the state after a flying visit rather than attend the Liberal State Conference,” Broad said.
“Jeremy Rockliff’s party is in tatters, his budget is broken, his Deputy Premier’s career is effectively on trial, he’s in a factional war with Eric Abetz and his own Federal Leader doesn’t want to be seen near him.”
Speaking at the conference on Saturday, Rockliff took aim at federal Labor for failing to support salmon industry jobs amid a review of aquaculture in Macquarie Harbour.
“What we are seeing is that same determination … where the blue wave is building right across the nation,” he said.
Tasmania is considered a key battleground for the upcoming federal election, particularly in the north-western seat of Braddon, where popular Liberal MP Gavin Pearce is stepping down.
Rockliff says his government’s 2024/25 budget, scheduled for release on September 12, would outline a “sensible pathway” to surplus and promised no cuts to essential services.
