Cassy O'Connor MP | Greens Leader
The Premier confirmed in Question Time today that his word is worth very little.
In response to Greens' questioning, Will Hodgman made it clear he is prepared to put cheap political purpose ahead of the concerns of the business community over the size of Parliament.
The Tasmanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has called for the numbers in the House of Assembly to be restored to 35, in the interests of good governance and to deepen the talent pool of potential Ministers.
Given the Premier's previous stated support for a restoration of the numbers, his response in Parliament today was weak and hypocritical.
It's a bit rich to argue it's too expensive to restore the House in the interests of good governance and that this money should be invested in public services, when your government has gutted public service jobs and funding.
In October 2010, Will Hodgman agreed, along with the Leaders of both Labor and the Greens' parties, to restore the numbers in the House of Assembly to 35 seats.
This was an tripartisan effort to repair the damage to Parliament and good governance caused by the Liberal and Labor deal in 1998 that sought to crush the Greens electorally.
It failed and since then, Liberal and Labor MPs, as well as former Ministers, have publicly and privately expressed regret over the cut in numbers and the impact this has had on a functional Parliament and good governance.
Unfortunately, instead of seizing this opportunity - where his government has the support of the business community for a more functional Parliament - the Premier has squibbed.
Again, it raises the question - if the Premier's word is so easily broken, who is actually running the show in Tasmania?