Decision puts the focus on swing voters

A DECISION to axe a $3 billion casino and resort on The Spit was likely a ploy to win swinging voters, according to a leading campaign strategist.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced Cabinet had terminated the proposal by ASF Group this week despite extensive consultation by her Government showing more than half the community supported it.

Stephen Stockwell, an adjunct professor of politics at Griffith University who specialises in campaign strategy, said the decision was likely made to attract votes, not serve the will of the people.

“ALP research must be showing up that swinging voters are against the idea of that amount of development on The Spit,” he said.

“The crucial thing in a campaign is not what overall majorities are after, but what will entice the swinging voters across to support one side or the other of politics.”

However, Gaven Labor candidate Meaghan Scanlon said the issue had not even been raised when she’d been doorknocking and another Labor insider said the party did not see the decision as a vote winner as it was “too divisive”.

Prof Stockwell did not agree with reports yesterday Labor’s Left had demanded the project be shunted in exchange for its support of the Adani project in North Queensland.

“The Left very clearly controls the numbers and the Left have got a position on Adani that it won’t go ahead because it won’t get finance,” he said.

“I don’t really see that it’s some sort of pay-off for the Left going soft on Adani.”

The seats of Bonney, Southport, Gaven and Broadwater are expected to bring a strong Labor campaign. Bonney in

particular has seen an influx of new residents in Parkwood and Arundel, while new residential towers in that electorate make it a somewhat unknown quantity in terms of political persuasion.

“Southport previously has been a reasonably strong seat for Labor – people who have moved into those towers in Southport, the last thing they want is to have their view of the ocean disrupted by a whole lot of other towers – you can see the political persuasion this decision provides,” Prof Stockwell said.

Prof Stockwell said One Nation could inadvertently help Labor’s chances of scoring a vital seat on the Coast.

“The potential to have an LNP Government propped up by One Nation is not going to be a popular position to a lot of new residents on the Gold Coast who see that as getting in the way of building the Gold Coast as a global brand,” he said.

“It’s very hard to pitch to the Chinese community when you’ve got One Nation pulling the strings in the background.”