Governing is not easy or predictable, so challenging
Minority government will ultimately be a test of leadership, writes Richard Eccleston
The votes are in and, while counting continues, the result was largely as predicted given the expansion of parliament to 35 seats – a significant swing against the Liberal government to the Jacqui Lambie Network and higher-profile independents. This is consistent with trends elsewhere where there is declining support for established parties amid greater political disengagement and electoral volatility.
This means that majority governments will become less likely unless established parties and their leaders can reinvent themselves by forming much stronger and credible connections with voters.
It is right that Jeremy Rockliff forms the next government as the incumbent premier and the leader of the party that will secure the most seats in the next parliament. It’s also reassuring that he has committed to leading Tasmania for the next four years although, along with his new party room, he will have to adopt a new approach to governing to the next parliament.
Tasmania needs a transition from party government, where a political party or coalition can largely ignore parliament between elections, to a new approach where the executive has to engage with parliament and the communities it represents and negotiate key priorities, policies and legislation within agreed parameters.
This is a big shift from the partisan point scoring we’ve been enduring in recent years and will require a significant cultural shift from all MPs, whether they sit on the government, cross or opposition benches.
The foundation for successful minority government is to focus on shared priorities and issues where there is broad agreement and encourage debate about how they might be achieved. If the election campaign achieved anything, it highlighted the need to do much better when it comes to delivering on health, housing and education, while improving transparency and integrity in government. In European multiparty systems there are quite formal and transparent post-election negotiations to establish policy priorities.
Non-government parties, and crossbench MPs in particular, also need to be clear about specific issues on which they are unwilling or unable to compromise. This may lead to the government abandoning policies which are unlikely to win parliamentary support, but there may be other occasions where legislation is passed with Labor’s support rather than relying on the crossbench. Such outcomes are consistent with a mature parliamentary democracy.
Effective government in Tasmania