Latest news with #BridgetArcher
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Early election looms as state leaders trade blame
A state election is inching closer as an embattled premier refuses to stand down to spare voters the pain of returning to the polls. Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff is preparing to call an early election as soon as Tuesday after narrowly losing a no-confidence motion in state parliament. The state Liberal leader could have stood aside or been removed to allow his party to continue to govern in minority with crossbench support. But he is forging ahead with plans to recall parliament on Tuesday to pass a bill to ensure government workers can keep getting paid, before asking Governor Barbara Baker to call an election. She could approve his request or ask another Liberal MP or Labor leader Dean Winter to try to form minority government. Mr Rockliff said an election date would likely be set this week and confirmed he would lead the party to the poll. "Dean Winter's guaranteed the election," he told reporters on Sunday. Tasmanians were sent to the ballot box for a state election as recently as March 2024 and another would mark the fourth in seven years. The unofficial election campaign has already kicked off, with Mr Rockliff revealing former federal MP Bridget Archer will run for Liberal preselection in the state seat of Bass. Mr Rockliff also confirmed the Liberals would not pull a previous pledge to introduce a five per cent levy on short-stay rentals, including Airbnb listings. The levy would partially offset the cost of waiving stamp duty for first-time buyers purchasing homes worth up to $750,000. Mr Winter is sticking to his guns in ruling out forming government with the Greens, without whom Labor doesn't have the numbers. He has defended bringing forward the no-confidence motion over the state budget, privatisation concerns and the Spirit of Tasmania ferry debacle, and doubled down on calls for Mr Rockliff to resign. "He's carrying on at the moment like a spoiled child that's been given out in a game of cricket," Mr Winter said. "And then instead of just accepting the umpire's decision he's picking up his bat and ball and going home."
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ousted rebel Lib plots surprise return
Ousted rebel MP Bridget Archer has confirmed she will be making a state tilt, with under-pressure Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff backing her for preselection. The announcement comes as Mr Rockliff is expected to call an election within days after the state Labor government, led by Opposition Leader Dean Winter, passed a no-confidence motion in parliament. Mr Rockliff said Ms Archer has 'put her hand up for preselection' for one of the seven state seats of Bass, with the Liberals currently holding three of the electorates. The political comeback comes just weeks after the former Liberal MP for Bass lost her seat to first-time candidate and former basketball coach Jess Teesdale, suffering a 9.4 per cent swing against the Liberal Party. Ms Archer acknowledged the Liberals 'bruising federal election loss', and said she was 'absolutely appalled' by Mr Winter's state parliament 'shenanigans'. '(It's) an utterly disgraceful display of self interest and a grab for power with no credible alternative in place, either, no credible alternative pathway for Tasmania going forward,' she told reporters. 'He has refused to make the parliament work. He declined the opportunity to make this parliament work.' During her six-year stint in federal parliament, Ms Archer earned a reputation for crossing the floor on issues like the social media ban for children under 16s, despite bipartisan support from the Coalition. Asked if she would still cross the floor on issues she feels strongly about, Ms Archer said the hoped she 'would not need to' but admitted that she was 'a strong voice'. 'I am the same person that I have always been. I'm not likely to sit quietly and not have my say,' she said. 'Do I want to go out and fight another election? No, I don't, because also I suspect the people of Tasmania don't want to be going to another election. 'But the reckless and selfish actions of Dean winter and his grab for power have sent us to this situation.' Mr Rockliff also reiterated comments that Mr Winters has 'forced' an election on Tasmanians, just 16 months after the most recent state election, and the fourth state poll in just seven years. While Mr Rockliff could prevent a snap poll if he resigns, he claimed Mr Winter has 'forced an election upon Tasmanians'. While parliament will resume on Tuesday to pass critical supply bills 'I did not want an election. I wanted the parliament to continue in a sensible way, it has been working well by any objective analysis,' he said. 'This is a parliament that was elected back in March 2024 and a parliament that has largely been working well, all but for Dean winters, selfish grab for power.' Federal Tasmanian senator Jonno Duniam has urged the state leadership to have a 'good, long think' over the potential for a sudden election. 'Unless my colleagues are 100 per cent certain that the voters of Tasmania are not going to punish them for sending them to an early election, they should be taking whatever steps are necessary,' he said. 'Going to an election will be a bad outcome.'
News.com.au
12 hours ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff backs ousted federal MP Bridget Archer's political comeback
Ousted rebel MP Bridget Archer has confirmed she will be making a state tilt, with under-pressure Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff backing her for preselection. The announcement comes as Mr Rockliff is expected to call an election within days after the state Labor government, led by Opposition Leader Dean Winter, passed a no-confidence motion in parliament. Mr Rockliff said Ms Archer has 'put her hand up for preselection' for one of the seven state seats of Bass, with the Liberals currently holding three of the electorates. The political comeback comes just weeks after the former Liberal MP for Bass lost her seat to first-time candidate and former basketball coach Jess Teesdale, suffering a 9.4 per cent swing against the Liberal Party. Ms Archer acknowledged the Liberals 'bruising federal election loss', and said she was 'absolutely appalled' by Mr Winter's state parliament 'shenanigans'. '(It's) an utterly disgraceful display of self interest and a grab for power with no credible alternative in place, either, no credible alternative pathway for Tasmania going forward,' she told reporters. 'He has refused to make the parliament work. He declined the opportunity to make this parliament work.' During her six-year stint in federal parliament, Ms Archer earned a reputation for crossing the floor on issues like the social media ban for children under 16s, despite bipartisan support from the Coalition. Asked if she would still cross the floor on issues she feels strongly about, Ms Archer said the hoped she 'would not need to' but admitted that she was 'a strong voice'. 'I am the same person that I have always been. I'm not likely to sit quietly and not have my say,' she said. 'Do I want to go out and fight another election? No, I don't, because also I suspect the people of Tasmania don't want to be going to another election. 'But the reckless and selfish actions of Dean winter and his grab for power have sent us to this situation.' Mr Rockliff also reiterated comments that Mr Winters has 'forced' an election on Tasmanians, just 16 months after the most recent state election, and the fourth state poll in just seven years. While Mr Rockliff could prevent a snap poll if he resigns, he claimed Mr Winter has 'forced an election upon Tasmanians'. While parliament will resume on Tuesday to pass critical supply bills 'I did not want an election. I wanted the parliament to continue in a sensible way, it has been working well by any objective analysis,' he said. 'This is a parliament that was elected back in March 2024 and a parliament that has largely been working well, all but for Dean winters, selfish grab for power.' Federal Tasmanian senator Jonno Duniam has urged the state leadership to have a 'good, long think' over the potential for a sudden election. 'Unless my colleagues are 100 per cent certain that the voters of Tasmania are not going to punish them for sending them to an early election, they should be taking whatever steps are necessary,' he said. 'Going to an election will be a bad outcome.'
The Guardian
15 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Former federal Liberal MP Bridget Archer recruited by Rockliff for snap Tasmania poll
Prominent former federal Liberal MP, Bridget Archer, has announced she will contest a snap Tasmanian election for the embattled state government, amid ongoing political upheaval. The Liberal premier, Jeremy Rockliff, is expected to call an election on Tuesday – only 15 months after Tasmanians last went to the polls – after the state parliament passed a motion of no confidence in him. On Sunday Rockliff announced that Archer – the former federal Liberal MP who lost the seat of Bass at the federal election in May – would run in the upcoming poll. Archer is a moderate ally of the premier and provided him with vocal support through the no confidence saga. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email 'I have just come off the back of a federal election which was a little bit bruising, I think it's fair to say, and I don't think I have really quite had enough time to process that,' Archer said on Sunday at a press conference alongside Rockliff. 'But I think like many Tasmanians, I have spent the last few days absolutely appalled with the shenanigans that have been played out by [the opposition leader] Dean Winter in the state parliament.' Archer, who crossed the floor multiple times in the federal parliament, said she was 'not going to be anyone's stooge or anyone's puppet' should she be elected in Tasmania. 'I'm always going to say what I think, and I'm going to do that in a constructive way.' Archer will stand in Bass – the same area she represented in federal parliament – attempting to win one of seven seats in the electorate, under Tasmania's multi-member Hare-Clark system. Asked about her federal loss – in which Archer suffered a swing of more than 9% against her – she said the campaign against her had attempted to link her to the former federal opposition leader, Peter Dutton. 'If we're applying that [same logic] here, going in to a state election, I'm 100% happy for people to say a vote for Bridget Archer is a vote for Jeremy Rockliff.' Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Rockliff said Archer was a welcome addition to the ticket. 'Bridget is a fighter. Bridget understands the importance of being part of team Tasmania,' he said. Labor, the Greens and several independents voted together to support the no confidence motion in Rockliff. The Liberals had run the state in a minority government – the Liberals hold only 14 of 35 lower house seats – and few analysts believe there is much chance of any party winning a majority at an election. The Greens – who hold the balance of power along with several independents – said on Saturday they would offer confidence and supply to Labor and the opposition leader to avoid an election that almost no one wants, and which is unlikely to break the state's political impasse. Winter has ruled out any such deal, saying Labor's agenda 'does not align with the Greens in any way, shape or form'.
ABC News
16 hours ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Bridget Archer puts her hand up to run for Tasmanian Liberals in Bass, despite election yet to be called
One month after losing the federal seat of Bass for the Liberals, Bridget Archer will attempt an immediate return to politics. Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff has confirmed she will seek preselection to run as a candidate for the state seat of Bass, despite a state election yet to be called. Mr Rockliff intends to ask on Tuesday for an election, after the state's lower house passed a no-confidence motion in him last week. It would be Tasmania's fourth election in seven years. At the federal election, Ms Archer suffered a 9.4 per cent swing against her to Labor's Jess Teesdale — a relatively unknown candidate who was preselected at the last minute — and lost the seat by 8 per cent two party preferred. Ms Archer — a moderate Liberal who crossed the floor multiple times during her time in federal parliament — said the events of the past week had driven her to put her hand up. "I have just come off the back of a federal election which was a little bit bruising, I think it's fair to say," Ms Archer said. "And I don't think I have really quite had enough time to process that. "But I think like many Tasmanians, I have spent the last few days absolutely appalled with the shenanigans that have been played out by [Labor leader] Dean Winter in the state parliament." Ms Archer said she would continue to stand up for what she believes in. After her loss in the federal election, Ms Archer pointed to Labor's messaging that linked her to former Liberal leader Peter Dutton as a critical factor. She won the federal seat of Bass in 2019, then held the seat in 2022, becoming the first incumbent Bass MP to do so in more than two decades. Last week's no-confidence motion was in Mr Rockliff, rather than the government itself, but he continues to rule out stepping aside for another Liberal leader in order to attempt to maintain minority government. He said Ms Archer's candidacy would help the party against Labor. "With the calibre of someone such as Bridget Archer willing to join many other candidates who are putting up their hands right now to ensure that we can stop Dean Winter's selfish grab for power." The Liberals hold three out of seven seats in Bass in Tasmania's multi-member Hare-Clark system, driven by the local electoral popularity of former deputy premier Michael Ferguson. Former sports presenter, now MP, Rob Fairs also polled well for the party. The selection of Ms Archer could help the party attempt to sandbag its seats in the electorate. Polling by EMRS — owned by Liberal-aligned Font PR — shows the proposed Macquarie Point stadium is unpopular in Bass, with 29 per cent in favour and 58 per cent against.
