Politics
David Bartlett: Zen master to snarling Tassie devil
DAVID Bartlett says he doesn’t believe the polls that suggest his days as Premier of Tasmania are numbered. What’s more, the 42-year-old insists he is happy as ever, stress free and sleeping well.
It’s strange then that within moments of these Zen-like reassurances, he’s as cranky as a Tasmanian devil on a vegan diet, snarling at an array of real and perceived opponents with surprising ferocity. The local media cops a shellacking for allegedly failing to adequately scrutinise his opponents; a group trying to find peace in the forests is dismissed as clueless; and a rural GP concerned about toxins is derided as being in league with the Greens.
You could forgive Bartlett for being a little crotchety. In May 2008, he took over the Labor leadership from Paul Lennon after four years of seemingly incessant scandal and cock-up. Just when everyone, Bartlett included, thought things could only get better, they spectacularly did not.
Without dwelling on them, a few of the subsequent calamities deserve a dishonourable mention.
Cabinet minister Paula Wriedt tried to kill herself and then turned on Bartlett for sacking her on sick leave with depression; the police commissioner was charged with (but not convicted of) illegally disclosing information to the government; there were damaging spats between Bartlett and chief prosecutor Tim Ellis and former police commissioner Richard McCreadie; and Bartlett promised to “draw a line in the sand” on support for the pulp mill, only to backflip and allow his treasurer to travel the world drumming up financiers for it.
There was a rail freight collapse and another minister forced out in the wake of nepotism allegations as Bartlett’s big education reforms descended into chaos and voters revolted over water price hikes.
That’s not to mention the loss of thousands of jobs as the global financial crisis put the bite on manufacturing, and the forestry industry slid further into decline.