Media release – Independent Clark MP Sue Hickey, 16 April 2021

Election call false and all on Premier’s head

Independent Clark MP Sue Hickey says Tasmanians are going to an early election only because an opportunistic Premier Peter Gutwein wanted to capitalise on his perceived popularity as a result of COVID-19.

“How dare the Premier once again blame me and say he needed the election because his Government was in minority?

“He engineered this for his own ends and now seeks to blame me. Well, it’s not on,” Ms Hickey said.

“He forced himself into a pseudo-minority by sacking me from the party, but that was as false as his claims are now.

“I provided him with a written guarantee of confidence and supply and everyone knows he had Madelaine Ogilvie in his back pocket. There was no minority.”

“So, his protestations that he could not make decisions in minority are patently untrue.”

Ms Hickey said government decisions were made by Cabinet and that was where the logjam has occurred.

“He’s been in majority government for seven years, so there is absolutely no excuse for his failures.

“The Liberal’s ultra-hard right and moderate right factions are on a knife edge and that is what paralysed the Government, not me.

“I was not in Cabinet and not consulted on its decisions, so don’t blame me for their inaction. We should be building houses and fixing the health system.

“We are now in the midst of a costly, early and unnecessary election because of the Premier’s own failures to control his factions and he has the temerity to blame me for a situation of his own making.

“If this is his line, has he misled the Governor as well as all Tasmanians? If so he just can’t be trusted.”

Ms Hickey said perhaps the biggest worry was that the Liberals expected Tasmanians to re-elect them to government.

“If that happens, we’ll get the same dishonest, self-serving and incompetent Ministers and woeful administration that the State has endured for the past seven years.

“They’ve had seven years and have failed dismally, yet they claim that minority government doesn’t work.

“Well, I tell you it can and does in many other successful democracies such as New Zealand, Canada, Denmark and the like.

“We need to elect strong independents to Parliament to keep the parties honest and rid Tasmania of these factional bullies who are only in it to benefit themselves.

“They are so afraid of dissent breaking out that their election campaign is so tightly controlled that only the Premier and one or two sycophant Minister are allowed to speak.”

Ms Hickey said Premier Gutwein’s debate claim yesterday that the election was forced by her placing the Liberals into minority was the final straw.

“This is false, dishonest in the extreme and must be rejected at the ballot box in the best interests of all Tasmanians.”