March state election: Former Liberal leader and Weatherill Government minister Martin Hamilton-Smith quitting politics
FORMER Liberal leader turned Labor Government Cabinet minister Martin Hamilton-Smith will quit politics at the March state election.
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- Galaxy poll shows Hamilton-Smith will lose Waite seat at election
BELOW - TIMELINE: The highs and lows of Martin Hamilton-Smith
FORMER Liberal leader turned Labor Government Cabinet minister Martin Hamilton-Smith will quit politics at the March state election.
Mr Hamilton-Smith will end 21 years as the MP for Waite after representing the electorate first as a Liberal before becoming an independent to help Labor’s Jay Weatherill secure government in 2014.
The former army commander has left vowing to support Nick Xenophon’s SA Best candidate Graham Davies in Waite at the March election.
Mr Hamilton-Smith, speaking with Matthew Abraham in his weekly Sunday Mail column, has also accused Opposition Leader Steven Marshall of being a puppet to federal Government Minister Christopher Pyne.
He also says Mr Marshall is nowhere near Mr Weatherill in terms of ability.
In October, Galaxy polling, commissioned by the Australian Bankers’ Association, showed the Labor Cabinet minister getting just 5 per cent of the vote in the seat of Waite.
Mr Hamilton-Smith, whose portfolios included investment, trade, defence and veterans affairs, said he decided “it was time to step back from political life and focus on family” over the Christmas/New Year break. “I’ve delivered for SA and my local community almost everything I set out to do,” he told the Sunday Mail.
“A total of $100 million of new projects and support in my local area over the past four years have built on its heritage as one of Adelaide’s oldest urban areas and most vibrant communities.
“I have been honoured to represent such a historic area and see it grow over that time.”
Mr Hamilton-Smith said the six highlights of his career were:
SUCCESSFULLY arguing the case for AFL to move back into the city;
WINNING the battle to secure the naval shipbuilding industry in South Australia by resisting the Abbott Government’s plans to buy submarines from Japan;
RE-INVENTING SA’s international engagement strategies to deliver an increase in exports from $12.3bn in 2014 to $15.4bn in 2017, adding 7000 jobs to the export sector;
BUILDING the $10m Anzac Memorial Walk along Kintore Tce, on time and on budget.
BECOMING the first state Space Industries Minister, and launching Australia’s first dedicated space industry centre.
“Providing a better and more prosperous future for our children and grandchildren is one of the fundamental responsibilities of any MP,” Mr Hamilton-Smith said.
“I can step back from politics confident that I did my job.”
Mr Hamilton-Smith, who secured 54.8 of first-preference votes at the 2014 state election, said he would do all he could to help SA Best candidate Graham Davies win in March.
Sam Duluk, who is the Liberals MP for Davenport, will contest the seat of Waite that has been held by the party since it was established in 1993.
The ALP is yet to announce a candidate for the seat.
THE HIGH AND LOWS OF MARTIN HAMILTON-SMITH
1997: The former SAS commando and childcare centre owner enters State Parliament after winning the safe Liberal seat of Waite.
2001: Appointed Tourism and Innovation Minister by then premier Rob Kerin, a position he held for four months before the Liberal Party’s crushing 2002 election defeat.
2005: Moves to challenge Mr Kerin for the position of Opposition Leader, but withdraws after a lack of party support. The leadership goes to Iain Evans.
2007: Challenges Mr Evans for the leadership, and wins 13 votes to 10. Support for the party grows considerably under his leadership.
2009: Suffers a double blow when he declares the Liberals have won the Frome preselection, only to lose the seat to independent Geoff Brock.
2009: Tables fake documents in Parliament that allege the Labor Party had accepted donations from the Church of Scientology. Liberal frontbencher Mitch Williams quits in protest at Mr Hamilton-Smith’s leadership. He responds by calling a leadership ballot.
2009: Wins ballot by one vote, but demands a redraw after failing to secure a commanding majority. As a result, he loses the second ballot and leadership to Isobel Redmond.
2012: Mr Hamilton-Smith unsuccessfully challenges Ms Redmond for the Liberal leadership.
2014: Defects from the Liberals to join Labor’s Cabinet as an independent as Trade and Investment Minister. His former party colleagues accuse him of treachery.
2017: A poll shows him getting just 5 per cent of the primary vote in Waite at the March election.