Media release – Cassy O’Connor MP | Greens Leader, 11 November 2021
Greens Table Bill to Clean Up Elections
On behalf of the Tasmanian Greens, I tabled the Electoral Amendment (Integrity of Elections) Bill 2021 in Parliament today. Our Bill would make lutruwita/Tasmania’s electoral laws more robust and democracy stronger.
Tasmanian politics has been corrupted by the influence of corporate donations for decades. It’s past time we had laws that deliver fairer elections, that are free from corporate influence, electing MPs that act in the public interest every time.
After the pokies barons bankrolled their 2018 election win, the Liberals promised to fix the state’s electoral laws. Three plus years of heel-dragging later, what they’ve come up with will still leave Tasmania with the weakest political donations laws in the nation.
Given the Gutwein Government’s failure to offer real, democratic change, the Greens decided to lead the way. Our Bill would truly get the toxic, corporate influence out of politics and, in doing so, give the Tasmanian people the democracy they deserve.
The Greens’ Bill bans corporate donations, sets a disclosure threshold of $1000 and implements real time disclosure. It sets a cap on donations from the same source and election expenditure, and – critically – introduces truth in political advertising laws.
The Bill also regulates third parties – like industry and lobby groups – in similar terms to candidates and political parties. Tasmanians who saw the wall to wall ‘Love Your Local’ advertising in the 2018 election, and who will never know how much money was spent or where it came from, will acknowledge the pressing need for this reform.
There has not been a clearer example of the need for reform than the poker machines debate currently before the Tasmanian Parliament.
Despite overwhelming community opposition to pokies in pubs and clubs, both Labor and the Liberals have put the interests of their corporate donors ahead of the Tasmanian people, and are working together to embed the harm for decades to come.
Tasmania has the weakest electoral laws in the country and that would continue under the Liberals’ changes. It’s past time for that to change, and we hope MPs put the interest of the Tasmanian people first and support our Bill.
You can read our Bill here – https://tasmps.greens.org.au/bill/electoral-amendment-integrity-election…
