Publican prepares to take on the country’s major political parties

The first Senate candidate for Tasmania’s newest political party hopes to shake up the country’s political system and give voters a greater say in the parliamentary process.

TASMANIA’S newest political party – the Local Party – has announced its first Senate candidate.

Leanne Minshull, the publican at the Fern Tree Tavern, set up the Tasmanian branch of the Australia Institute and has also worked as a public policy expert, corporate sustainability consultant and political advisor.

“I have met and worked with people from all walks of life, but the type of people entering parliament is narrow and getting narrower,” Ms Minshull said.

“I was a mum at 16, a small business owner in my 20s and a solicitor by my early 30s.

“I saw early on how laws made by a tiny minority shaped the lives of the majority. That is why I’m now working hard to get people from much broader backgrounds into our parliaments.”

Members of The Local Party, Leanne Minshull, left, and Anna Bateman at the Fern Tree Tavern, which they are using as their party HQ. Picture: Zak Simmonds

Ms Minshull said politics in Tasmania was “like watching an episode of Dynasty”.

“You get into parliament because your dad or mum was, or you have spent decades working your way through party structures,” she said.

“Once elected, some politicians stay too long, losing perspective and connection with ordinary Tasmanians.

“Their focus turns to keeping themselves in parliament and others out.”

Under the Local Party’s constitution, elected members have a conscience vote on every piece of legislation.

Ms Minshull said under the party’s rules she would not be able to make a promise in Tasmania but vote another way in Canberra.

“Our democracy needs people who are free to speak their mind and vote their conscience,” she said.

“Politics should be about making decisions in partnership with each other, not sham consultation processes, where we are asked what we think and then ignored.”

Leanne Minshull and Anna Bateman this year created an event getting pubgoers together to reflect on the year in politics, to see what “passed the pub test” and what didn’t. Picture: Eddie Safarik

As part of the Local Party’s constitution, elected members must hold at least two citizen juries a year.

Ms Minshull said citizen juries were run by randomly selecting a panel of citizens and presenting them with evidence from experts on a particular subject.

She said juries then deliberated, and presented findings and recommendations to the government.

“Citizen juries are growing in popularity across the globe and have been used by the South Australian government to decide the location of a nuclear waste dump and the Victorian government to assist in better health outcomes,” Ms Minshull said.

“Tasmania has its fair share of seemingly intractable problems.

“We want to put those problems on the table and work them out together.

“It takes some time and resources but no more than what governments currently spend paying mainland consultancies to come up with recommendations nobody wants.”

Ms Minshull said taking on the party system would be hard, but “if it can start anywhere it can start in Tasmania”.

Originally published as Publican prepares to take on the country’s major political parties