A Modest Proposal (With Apologies to Jonathan Swift)

The final seat has been declared in Tasmania’s 2025 election. It was a poll that no one wanted and we now have a result that everyone expected and few say they like.

This raises a legitimate question as we consider the way forward. If we take the same path taken after the 2024 election that produced an identical result, won’t we end up in the same place again?

There is another choice at the crossroads before us.

It is clear now that, just as in the last parliament, the crossbench will be the second largest group in the Assembly with the Labor party again being relegated to third place.

This raises a question as to who really has the numbers to be an effective Opposition?

Tasmania does not have a formal mechanism for identifying the Opposition in Parliament despite special provisions made in standing orders for the Leader of the Opposition.

In the absence of clear guidance we can turn to the House of Representative Practice which does provide guidance. It says, the “Opposition is the party or group which has the greatest number of non-government Members in the House.”

There could be a case for the crossbench, based on the two recent elections, to serve as the parliamentary Opposition. Their numbers demonstrate substantial public support for resisting both the major parties in Government.

Moreover, Liberal and Labor agree fairly closely on fundamentals such as the stadium, Marinus, forestry and salmon. Together they have the numbers to protect their common interests.

Thus, there would be a more robust and complete debate in the chamber on such issues led by shadow ministers who have been properly resourced, briefed and have priority under standing orders.

The benefits to Parliament as an institution could be substantial in terms of opening the doors to practical reform as fixed term parliaments, making Question Time meaningful, elevating responses to petitions and enhancing the role for private members.

Assuming the new official Opposition would guarantee whichever major party was prepared to govern in true minority with supply and confidence, either Liberals or Labor could fill out a full ministry and govern in this more open and collaborative parliament.

Numbers favour the Liberals, but they would find the leash very short and have to learn some new humility after four terms in Government.

A period in the private members wilderness could be very useful for a Labor party that clearly has not made effective use of its 11 years in Opposition.

Of course, becoming a responsible formal Opposition might force the crossbench into a term of parliamentary purgatory that it deserves for having voted for the election that no one wanted.

In any case, the voters of Tasmania have expressed their frustration and want something to change.

Perhaps shaking up the roles in the new Parliament might be just the tonic that is needed to find a new way forward!

Dr Richard Herr is currently an Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Law. Until recently, he was the academic director for the Faculty of Law’s Parliamentary Law, Practice and Procedure course. He has held a variety of positions in the University of Tasmania since his appointment in January 1973 including Head of Department.

Editor’s note: the connection to Jonathan Swift lies in the satirical nature of the proposal. Swift was a master of political and social satire, and his most famous work, ‘A Modest Proposal,’ is a prime example. In ‘A Modest Proposal,’ Swift suggests that the impoverished Irish should sell their children as food to the wealthy. While this is an extreme and shocking idea, it is meant to highlight the desperate situation of the Irish and the callousness of the English.

Similarly, the author of the provided text uses a seemingly outlandish proposal—that the crossbench become the official opposition—to highlight the perceived dysfunction of the Tasmanian political system. By suggesting a radical solution, the author draws attention to the problems of a government that has produced an ‘identical result’ to the previous election and a Labor party that has not been an ‘effective Opposition.’

In essence, both Swift and the Herr use a ‘modest proposal’ to critique a political or social problem. Swift’s proposal is far more extreme, but the underlying technique of using satire to draw attention to a serious issue is the same.

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