As Tasmania waits to find out who will form the next state government, here are the priorities of the new parliament's independents

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25-07-2025

Tasmania has elected another large crossbench that once again might equal or outnumber Labor Party members.
Regardless of which major party forms government, they will need support from some or most of these politicians.
The Liberal Party has the easier job when it comes to making up the numbers, but Labor has more in common with them.
With negotiations underway, most of the independents are keeping tight-lipped on what they might be seeking, so what do we know about their priorities?
Kristie Johnston was first elected as an independent in the 2021 election.
This time around, she's had a massive swing towards her.
Ms Johnston has been a fierce anti-stadium critic and has regularly raised concerns about the impact of pokies on her constituents.
She even introduced a bill to the last parliament that would've forced gambling companies to repay money that had been stolen to put through poker machines.
She's also used her time in parliament to raise awareness about the greyhound racing industry, and push for greater transparency and accountability around a range of issues including the budget and the stadium.
Ms Johnston said the state has some very big decisions in front of it, and she wants to understand what the leaders are offering, particularly when it comes to budget repair.
"What I want to see is someone after the election, after listening to what the people have said, is to come up with a clear plan," she said.
"Treasury in their own PEFO report have indicated that we need to look at a number of factors to address the budget crisis.
"The expenditure side, but also the revenue side, and they simply said looking at economic growth is not going to be enough to fix the issue.
Speaking on election night, Ms Johnston said she wanted the major parties to do a better job at listening to and collaborating with the crossbench.
"We need to see a respectful mature parliament that's respectful of everyone's voices."
She has confirmed she would not want a ministry in a power-sharing government.
Peter George is best known as an anti-salmon campaigner, having been the spokesperson for Neighbours of Fishfarming for years.
While he leant into his anti-salmon reputation during the campaign, it certainly wasn't the only thing he spoke about.
He was vocal in his opposition to the proposed Macquarie Point AFL stadium, and rolled out a variety of policies addressing concerns about health, housing and education.
Like most of the independents and The Greens, Mr George wants to see a strengthened Integrity Commission with public hearings.
He also wants to end native forest logging, crack down on short-stay accommodation, and address the state's soaring debt.
"We have 5,000 people in this very small state … waiting to get decent roofs over their heads, we have a health system that's sort of tottering and teetering under the weight of demand, and we have an education system that's turning out functional illiteracy of somewhere close to 50 per cent.
"Those are important things that we need to deal with.
"I want to hear about that, and I want to see a parliament of 35 people roll up their sleeves and do some serious work across political lines."
Mr George said he wants to hear what the parties' plans are for "rebuilding Tasmania's future" but so far his dealings with them have not won him over.
"One area of concern is that Labor and Liberal seem to have drawn lines in the sand saying we won't talk about this, we're going to insist on that," he posted on a video on Facebook.
"Well, that's not how minority government works, that's certainly not how collaboration works, so slight warning there, but we'll deal with this down the track."
North West coaster Craig Garland received a massive jump in his primary vote this election.
The fisherman was perhaps best known for his views on salmon farming before he was elected to parliament in 2024 — and he has certainly peppered the government with a lot of questions about the industry.
But he has also spoken out on integrity and was so concerned about the budget, he was prepared to vote against it.
This time around, Mr Garland wants a seat at the table. He wants to be included in budget repair and the development of policy.
Speaking on election night, Mr Garland said "the focus has to flip".
"The domestic violence in the North West Coast. We have four beds to deal with women fleeing domestic violence. One hundred and fifty women turned away, 147 children, and we're talking about building the biggest stadium."
Mr Garland has spoken to both leaders but has yet to discuss any sort of policies or requests.
"There's a lot of talk, and then in the same breath I hear, 'We're not moving on salmon, we're not moving on native forest logging,'" he said.
Mr Garland is opposed to Hobart's waterfront stadium, which likely helped his vote in the seat of Braddon, and he is no fan of the proposed undersea electricity and data interconnector between Tasmania and Victoria, known as Marinus Link.
A Labor Party veteran turned independent, David O'Byrne managed to make it work during the last parliament with Liberal leader Jeremy Rockliff's minority government.
He was one of the few crossbenchers who did not support the no-confidence motion in the premier.
Speaking after the election about his dealings with the leaders, Mr O'Byrne said he is "not a transactional politician".
He does not have "a shopping list of issues" and is instead focused on who could offer the most functional parliament.
"My view is we need to get on with governing, we need to find someone who can not only get the numbers on the floor of parliament for the first vote, but can sustain those numbers for a long period of time," he said.
In terms of his core issues, they are unsurprisingly Labor core issues — health, housing and the cost of living.
In the last parliament, he spent a lot of time questioning the government about the ongoing staffing and reliability issues facing Metro Tasmania, various women's healthcare issues, and TasNetworks' wage negotiations.
His bill to amend the Family Violence Act to include the abuse of animals passed parliament last year. He also tabled a bill to introduce Industrial Manslaughter laws, but it was superseded by Labor.
Mr O'Byrne is the only crossbencher who supports the stadium.
The Greens are the party neither the Liberals, nor Labor, wants to deal with — but having won five seats, they may not be easily ignored.
Greens leader Rosalie Woodruff has made it clear that in a balance of power situation, she would do all she could to stop the stadium from being built.
"We've been really strong. We're going to fight and do everything we can to pile on the pressure to stop this stadium.
"We know that's what's needed. The budget's in a desperate situation. We will not support cuts to essential services."
Other things on the Greens' agenda include a strengthened Integrity Commission, something Labor has voiced support for in the past, and they want to see a Treaty with Tasmania's First Nations, another policy Labor is on board with.
They are also likely to try and seek some improvement for renters while clamping down on short stay accommodation.
The party also wants to keep pushing the major parties to find new revenue for the budget. They would like to see salmon farming companies pay some royalties for the use of Tasmania's waterways, and increased mining royalties to bring Tasmania into line with other jurisdictions.
The Greens will not hold the balance of power if the Liberals form a minority government as there will be at least four other crossbenchers they could rely on to get votes through.
Labor will likely have to deal with the Greens, if it wants to govern with just 10 of its own MPs, but it will need some form of confidence and supply guarantee from the minor party.
That does not mean there will necessarily be any trade on policy or concessions from Labor, but the two parties did combine forces several times in the last parliament to pass their own legislation, including introducing Industrial Manslaughter laws and lowering the political disclosure threshold to $1,000.
As counting continues in the state election, Shooters, Fishers and Farmers candidate Carlo Di Falco does not even know if he has been elected in the seat of Lyons, but that hasn't stopped him from getting calls from the two major party leaders.
He describes himself as a "former blue collar worker" and "not much of a public speaker".
Mr DI Falco said that, like the name suggests, he will be fighting for the rights of rural Tasmanians.
"The phone coverage of a lot of the Tasmanians that are missing out. Even where I live in Forcett, not that far from Sorell, I've got really patchy coverage where I am," he said.
"We need to improve that."
Mr Di Falco said there were also a lot of issues with "social cohesion".
"That's why I'm pushing for more funding for Neighbourhood Houses because sometimes when people's lives go to custard, probably the best place to go is somewhere where you can talk to somebody in the community."
Mr Di Falco is pro development but he is not too keen on the proposed AFL stadium on Hobart's waterfront.
"I'd be taking that money and increasing Hydro storage. If you want to increase wealth, that comes off the back of cheap, reliable energy."