Mercury (Hobart)

MPs get houses in order

Shelton parliament’s leading landlord with interest in 17 properties

- DAVID KILLICK

TASMANIAN MPs prefer to invest in property rather than shares, with 24 lower house members owning an interest in 46 properties between them.

The latest update to the Register of Members’ Interests reveals most MPs enjoy modest wealth — with a family home and perhaps a shack being the most common declaratio­n.

Mark Shelton emerged as the most en--thu si as tic property in--vestor in the e House of f Assembly, with an interest in seven properties in Bracknell, Cressy and Port Sorell.

Liberals Elise Archer, Guy Barnett, Sarah Courtney, Roger Jaensch and Nic Street and Labor’s Anita Dow, Ella Haddad, Jennifer Houston, Alison Standen, David O’Byrne and Michelle O’Byrne declared interest in a single property each.

Premier Peter Gutwein and Liberal MP Jacquie Petrusma; Labor’s Rebecca White, Shane Broad and Jenna Butler and Greens member Rosalie Woodruff declared an interest in two properties each.

Deputy Premier Jeremy Rockliff, Speaker Sue Hickey, independen­t Madeleine Ogilvie and Greens leader Cassy O’Connor declared interests in three properties each and Liberals Michael Ferguson and John Tucker declared four.

Most MPs declared no shareholdi­ngs, although MyState shares were the most popular among the eight equities investors.

Shareholdi­ngs appeared modest and were generally in blue- chip companies.

Roger Jaensch was the Warren Buffett of the house, with holdings in Woolworths, Wesfarmers, the Commonweal­th Bank and Coles.

Qantas and Virgin lounge membership­s were common and each of the party leaders and most ministers declared their membership­s as gifts.

Labor deputy leader Michelle O’Byrne was the champion joiner: declaring membership­s of 24 different organisati­ons, including the Collingwoo­d Football Club.

Premier Peter Gutwein declared patronages or vice- patronages of 16 organisati­ons, Elise Archer declared 11, and Deputy Premier Jeremy Rockliff had nine.

New MP Felix Ellis’s declaratio­n was not published on the parliament­ary website and the Legislativ­e Council’s register has not yet been updated.

A government spokeswoma­n said new members had three months from the date they were elected to complete a register of interests return.

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