Issues will require a mature approach by all MPs

during the next four years will require an honest, open and informed approach to decision making and a commitment to putting the petty partisan politics to one side. All MPs and the parliament itself will need access to credible independent research and analysis so they can make more active and informed contributions to the development of legislation. Ultimately this demands both sharing power and responsibility.

There are examples, such as the Tasmanian parliament’s considered development of voluntary assisted dying legislation in 2021, where there was a respectful and informed debate in relation to a complex and sensitive issue on which MPs held a range of views. This approach should be expanded and embedded in Tasmanian democratic practice.

History shows that governing is neither easy nor predictable, and challenging and divisive issues – whether it’s the stadium or forestry and unforeseen crises, such as Covid19 – will always crop up.

Rather than using these issues to divide the community we must adopt a more mature approach and systematically examine alternatives and trade-offs. One approach which is gaining traction elsewhere and could be considered is subjecting important and contested policies to a citizen jury process where a crosssection of Tasmanians are briefed and consider an issue outside the distortions and distractions of the political process.

Granted such a process is more resource intensive, but if done well it could deliver greater community understanding of key issues and support for agreed solutions.

There are also legitimate concerns that a negotiated approach to policy making would put further pressure on Tasmania’s already strained budget as the government is forced to meet the demands of the crossbench. This is where credible analysis of the likely costs and benefits of policies will be important, so the trade-offs associated with any given proposal are clearly understood by all stakeholders and the community.

In many countries, policies or legislation proposed by nongovernment parties or MPs must identify cost savings in other programs to ensure there is no additional cost to the budget.

We need a more collaborative and mature approach to governing, but it’s also important to recognise that politics is and should be a robust contest of ideas and that issues should be debated with alternatives considered in an honest and respectful way. Ideally we would wait until the final months of the next parliamentary term, in 2028, before partisan campaigning really kicked off again! In a perfect world parties and candidates would be judged on their contributions to the Tasmanian community rather than on political point scoring.

Minority government will ultimately be a test of leadership, both of Jeremy Rockliff as premier and the collective leadership of all of our MPs.

ABUJA: Over 130 Nigerian schoolchildren freed following a mass kidnapping have been reunited with their families and are expected to return home this week.

Gunmen abducted the children from their school in northwestern Kuriga village on March 7. Officials said 137 were released unharmed this week and were taken to Kaduna city for health checks before being reunited with their emotional relatives.

An adult abducted with the children died in captivity, and six of the pupils were treated in hospital earlier this week for injuries received while held for ransom.

Relatives said the kidnappers demanded a large ransom, but President Bola Ahmed Tinubu told security forces not to pay up.